From our beloved and storied hockey franchise the Montreal Canadiens to our surging soccer team the Montreal Impact, from hometown UFC hero Georges St-Pierre to the power and spectacle of the Grand Prix and the thrilling athleticism of the Rogers Cup, Montreal is a year-long destination for sports fans. And if you’re coming to town for the big game and you need a place to stay, we can help with that too.

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(sports fans) Thousands of Mixed Martial Arts fans fill the Bell Centre this Saturday night for the UFC 154 Georges St-Pierre vs. Carlos Condit fight. Whether you’re going to witness the welterweights yourself or not, our Montreal fight-fan recommendations are sure to keep you strong (and well fed). Or you could just go see comedian Joe Rogan, sometime live color commentator for UFC – he’s at Metropolis on November 16. Meanwhile, out on the ice, Montreal’s Stars, defending Clarkson Cup champions, play world-class women’s hockey against the Boston Blades – both teams boast Olympic national players who play a fast, technical game – plus, proceeds from this Saturday’s game and silent auction (plus cupcakes!) go to breast cancer on November 17 at Étienne-Desmarteau Arena.

(on stage spectacle) On Saturday night, the Opéra de Montréal closes the velvet curtains on Richard Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, featuring Germany’s bass-baritone Thomas Gazheli and soprano Maida Hundeling at Place des Arts. A circus like no other, Montreal-based international circus troupe 7 Doigts de la Main’s Séquence 8 not only impresses with acrobatics and endurance, but with great storytelling, a witty sense of humour and, yes, coolness, at La Tohu circus centre to November 17. And Broadway pizazz whisks into town with the award-winning stage musical Mary Poppins, at Place des Arts, November 21-25.

(dance & theatre ) Canadian (though New-York-based) choreographer and Baryshnikov disciple Aszure Barton returns to Montreal with two pieces for several dancers: Busk and her newest piece Awáa, presented by Danse Danse at Place des Arts. Meanwhile, Montreal choreographer Frédérick Gravel blends live rock music with wild, emotive dance in his Usually Beauty Fails, a look at beauty, love and relationships – November 16-17 at Place des Arts. Choreographer Peter Trosztmer brings powerful and eccentric EESTI: Myths and Machines back November 16-18 at Monument-National, part of the Tangente program. And at the Centaur Theatre, see Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire’s Good People, set in Boston’s working-class Irish “Southie” neighbourhood, to December 6.

(movie lands) New documentary film tells it like it is at RIDM, Montreal’s premier international documentary film festival, at the Cinéma Québécoise, Excentris and Grande Bibliothèque to November 18. This weekend see Room 237, a mind-bending trip through conspiracy-like theories on Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece The Shining, a short film by Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Uncle Boonmee) called Mekong Hotel, Argentinian filmmaker José Luis García’s The Girl from the South, a search through North Korea for a one-time peace activist, spend some harrowing time aboard a massive industrial fishing vessel out at sea in Leviathan, and see what love might or might not be in Florian Habicht’s Love Story – see the fest’s full schedule online. And starting November 22, Image+Nation celebrates 25 years of bringing LGBT films from around the world to Montreal, sharing stories on screen with film professionals and film fans alike.

(pre-holiday shop) Before holiday shopping stress really hits, treat yourself (and if gifts happen, they happen, right?) this weekend in Montreal in different ways. While Montreal’s holiday craft and artisal fairs don’t kick off until later this month, this weekend’s Expozine is well worth a visit – after all, it’s one of the largest small press fairs in North America, where authors, artists and zine makers impress live and on paper – November 17-18 at Saint-Enfant-Jesus Church (5035 Ste-Dominique). That’s just around the corner from prime designer shopping avenue Laurier, in the Outremont neighbourhood, where hot winter fashion and gourmet food and drink make for an enlivening shopping experience.

(festival sound scene) New local and international bands keep rocking the city at music festival M for Montreal. On Friday, November 16, see local (and well beyond) faves Plants and Animals at the Corona Theatre and Bran Van 3000 at L’Olympia. On November 17, see Iceland’s much-loved Of Monsters and Men at Metropolis, get a full sonic deal with dramatic, psychedelic rock stars Yamantaka//Sonic Titan and more, at Sala Rossa, while across the street at Casa del Popolo is Brooklyn-based multi-instrumentalist Man Forever, Goose Hut and friends, dance it up to the synthesizer pop of Mozart’s Sister and Cadence Weapon at Il Motore, and get your brain shaken up with the great Death Grips and Mykki Blanco at Theatre Corona. A diversity of world music makes up Mundial Montreal, closing on November 16 with klezmer-hip-hop entertainer Socalled making the party happen with Elisapie at Cabaret du Mile-End.

(more music) Who’s in town this Friday but Bob Dylan and his band, playing songs old and new (including from his new album Tempest), with former Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler, November 16 at the Bell Centre. American punk rock stalwarts Dropkick Murphys drive hard into town on November 18 at Metropolis, while rapper A$AP Rocky follows their lead, though in his own way, to Metropolis on November 20. And on November 21, pop-rock fan favourite Metric is joined by Stars at the Bell Centre.

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On November 17, Montreal’s Bell Centre will host a UFC battle of giants, pitting our own homegrown welterweight champion and current belt-holder Georges St-Pierre against American fighter and interim belt-holder Carlos Condit. The combat will fill the arena to the brim (last time we broke UFC records!) and welcome thousands of fight fans to the city – so without further ado, here’s an itinerary for you to make the most of your time in la belle ville.

All good days start with eggs, and in direct relation to how many bars Montreal has, the city also abounds with morning-after brunch places. There are chain restaurants downtown – Chez Cora and Eggspectation – that make a descent pair of sunny side ups, but why not branch out a little… go to Lawrence, up in Mile End, for a scrumptious plate of baked eggs or the local favourite, veal sweetbreads with arugula and big crusty bread (yes, for breakfast – you want hair on your chest, don’t you?). Otherwise Fabergé, around the corner on Fairmount, is a big, bright and happening bruncherie that makes a mean benedict.

While you’re in one of the city’s most happening hoods, take a stroll and shop a little – because not all MMA fans dig Affliction t-shirts. Manhood, on St-Laurent near St-Viateur, caters to the urbane but no-nonsense man, with racks full of check shirts, perfectly cut hoodies and just-so jeans. Down the street there’s Surplus, a store that sells Diesel seconds at crazy discounted prices. And on Park Avenue, make a pit stop at Mile End Kicks for the latest in fly footwear – think Hummel high tops in a million different shades.

Is it time for lunch already? Jump on the metro at the Laurier station and for $3.00, you can go to Namur station, where an icon of Montreal awaits – well, actually, two icons. The first is the Orange Julep, a giant orange-shaped building on the side of Décarie expressway that makes the best toasted hotdogs and French fries in the city. Grab a jug of sweet, malted orange julep – made on the spot – to go and wander across Décarie to the other icon, though it’s still a bit of a secret pilgrimage: Tri-Star, the gym where not only GSP, but John Jones, Kenny Florian, Ivan Menjvar and Miguel Torres train. Throw a penny at the front door or something for eternal good luck!

Downtown is your next destination – Place des Arts metro station, to be precise – because by now fight time is nearing, and it’s time for some blood-rousing pre-battle drinks. Hit the town’s new hotspot, Bar Furco, for a good-looking place to hang – full of raw wood and industrial heating vents – and sample some local brewskies or some of the city’s best mixed drinks while eyeing the local merchandise. Otherwise, closer to the Bell Centre there’s perennial favourite Dominion Square Tavern, which serves the best classic cocktails this side of London and some amazing ploughman’s platters. But make sure you don’t lose track of the ticking clock…

It’s showtime! Head a few blocks southwest to the Bell Centre for the big event – the prelims start at 6:15. Apart from the amazing championship bout, the main card will pit between Kampmann against Hendricks, Carmont against Lawlor, Ring against Philippou, and Hominick against Garza. By the end of the event, if your guy won head for a celebratory cigar at nearby Stogies (remember, Cubans are legal here) – or go straight to the club to drown your sorrows in the tastiest way. Newtown, the Crescent street classic spread over three-storeys of grinding and bumping, is a mere skip and jump away and HOST OF THE OFFICIAL UFC 154 PARTY, Arena is a little further, a ga-dunk ga-dunk get-down club that’s just the kind of place a fighter or two might end up.

Past last-call and you’re still standing? Get yourself a hangover-saving poutine at the 24-hour La Banquise – it’ll require a quick cab ride, but it’s worth it. After that, for the love of God, go to bed!

A

THE DETAILS

UFC 154, November 17, 2012

Bell Centre, 1909 avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal, 1-877-668-8269

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